Friday, October 29, 2010

Giveaway & Author Interview with Grey Griffins: The Clockwork Chronicles Book 1: The Brimstone Key, co-Author J.S. Lewis

Today we are excited to have J.S. Lewis, co-author of the newest series Grey Griffins The Clockwork Chronicles, with us today.

Here's a little bit about the series:



A brand new adventure starring The Grey Griffins!
Max---the leader
Natalia---the brains
Ernie---the changeling
Harley---the muscle


A year ago, the Grey Griffins were just regular kids from Avalon, Minnesota. That was before they learned about the existence of evil fairies, werewolves, and other things that go bump in the night. Now they are monster-hunters, celebrated heroes, and allies to the legendary Templar knights---but even heroes have to go to school.

When the Griffins enroll at Iron Bridge Academy, a school to train young recruits in the fight against the forces of evil, they find themselves at the center of a whole new adventure. The Clockwork King, a Templar foe from days past, has returned to finish the plan he set in motion decades ago. A plot to steal the souls of changelings---humans infused with fairy blood and supernatural abilities---in order to power his army of clockwork war machines.
(quoted from Goodreads)



What inspired you and Derek to write the Grey Griffins series?

Growing up I wanted to be a comic book artist. Derek and I have about 200 characters that we created over the years, but in order to make an actual comic book, those characters needed stories. I figured out along the way that I actually enjoyed the story process more than drawing, so I made the shift. Derek and I had talked about write something together since we were teenagers. We decided to combine some of the same myths that inspired our favorite stories (Star Wars and Lord of the Rings) with the adventures we went on growing up in Iowa and Minnesota, and the end result was the first Grey Griffins trilogy.

In three words, how would you describe The Brimstone Key?

Steampunk for kids.

Growing up, if you could have been best friends with one of your characters who would that have been and why?

I'd love to hang out with all of them. But if I had to choose one, I'd pick Harley. He's been through quite a bit for being so young -- he's never met his dad. In fact, he hasn't even seen a picture of him. His mom has to work two jobs just to have enough money to put food on the table and keep the roof over their heads. Yet no matter what happens, Harley never changes. Circumstances don't affect him the way they can affect me. He's stoic and brave and I'd want that to rub off on me!

What character did you enjoy getting to know the most?

I've enjoyed Ernie's story quite a bit, because all Ernie wants to do is to belong. He feels like an outcast no matter what situation he's in, and I think we can all feel that way. He uses humor to try and get people to accept him, and I find myself doing that as well.

As a teen, who were some of your favorite authors?

My favorite author then, now and forever is John Ronald Reuel Tolkien. It started when I was six. My parents took me to a record shop (records pre-date tapes, which pre-date CDs, which pre-date mP3s), and I was told that I could get any three 45s that I wanted. A "45" meant they had one song on one side, and second on the other. After deliberating, I got the first rap song of all time -- Charlie Daniels Band's "The Devil Went Down to Georgia," Chic's "Le Freak," and "The Hobbit" book on record, which came with an illustrated book so I could follow along. I tackled the novel version when I was in seventh grade at Johnston Middle School in Iowa, thanks to Ms. Pollack, who forced us to read the first thing every morning. I've read the book -- and the entire "Lord of the Rings" series -- every year of my life since then. I also loved the "Narnia" series, "The Riftwar Saga" by Raymond E. Feist, "The Iron Tower Trilogy" by Dennis L. McKiernan, "This Present Darkness" by Frank Peretti, and some other fantasy series. I still love fantasy books, but I've worked hard to expand my reading list to include biographies, histories (especially about World War II), and other genres as well.

Thank you Jon for visiting with us today!

You can find out more about Jon and
The Grey Griffins series at the following links:
Blog:
www.jonslewis.com
Twitter: @jonslewis
Facebook:
www.facebook.com/greygriffins
Web:
www.greygriffins.com

Thank you to Jon and Little Brown Kids, we have an exciting giveaway!

1 winner will receive a published copy of The Brimstone Key along with two posters from the book. A 2nd winner will receive two The Brimstone Key posters. *Each poster is different and will randomly be selected to go to the winner*

Here's an example of two of the posters:


To Enter Please Fill Out This Form:
*Open Internationally (please send our over seas shipping policy under our Giveaway Policy page).


I would be most content if my children grew up to be the kind of people who think decorating consists mostly of building enough bookshelves. ~ Anna Quindlen

Good children's literature appeals not only to
the child in the adult, but to the adult in the child.
~ Anonymous ~